Page 6 - aruba-today-20210109

A6 WORLD NEWS
Saturday 9 January 2021
Seoul court orders Japan to compensate 12 Korean sex slaves

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) if Japan refuses to com-
— A South Korean court pensate victims.
on Friday ordered Japan Japan's Foreign Ministry
to financially compensate said in a statement that
12 South Korean women Vice Foreign Minister Takeo
forced to work as sex slaves Akiba had summoned
for Japanese troops during South Korean Ambassador
World War II, a landmark Nam Gwan-pyo to register
ruling that's set to rekindle Tokyo's protest of the ruling.
animosities between the Chief Cabinet Secretary
Asian neighbors. Katsunobu Kato also called
Japan immediately protest- the ruling "extremely regret-
ed the ruling, maintaining table," saying "the Japa-
that all wartime compen- nese government cannot
sation issues were resolved accept this by any means."
under a 1965 treaty that re- South Korea's Foreign Min-
stored their diplomatic ties. istry said later Friday it re-
The Seoul Central District spects the ruling and will
Court ruled the Japanese strive to restore the dignity
government must give 100 of the women. It said it will
million won ($91,360) each examine the verdict's pos-
to the 12 aging women sible effects on ties with
who filed the lawsuits in Portraits of late former South Korean comfort women are displayed near the Japanese Embassy in Japan and make efforts to
2013 for their wartime sexu- Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 8, 2021. maintain "future-oriented"
al slavery. Associated Press cooperation with Tokyo.
The court said Japan's mo- Seoul and Tokyo, both key
bilization of these women nese soldiers who caused already diseased and rep- ward and registered with U.S. allies, are closely linked
as sexual slaves was "a them bodily harm, venere- resented by their surviving the government as victims to each other economi-
crime against humanity." al diseases and unwanted relatives, filed a separate of sexual slavery, but only cally and culturally. But
It said it happened when pregnancies and left "big suit against Japan, and 16 of them, all in their 80s their historical and territo-
Japan "illegally occupied" mental scars" in the wom- that ruling is expected next and 90s, are still alive. rial disputes stemming from
the Korean Peninsula from en's lives. week. Observers say it's unlikely Japan's colonial occupa-
1910-45, and its sovereign The proceedings in the The women were among for Japan to abide by the tion have often complicat-
immunity cannot shield it case had been delayed as tens of thousands across South Korean court ruling. ed Washington's efforts to
from lawsuits in South Ko- Japan refused to receive occupied Asia and the A support group for women strengthen trilateral coop-
rea. legal documents. Seven of Pacific who were sent to forced to work as sex slaves eration to deal with North
The court said the women the 12 women died while front-line Japanese military said it may take legal steps Korea's nuclear threat and
were the victims of "harsh waiting for the ruling. brothels. About 240 South to seize Japanese govern- China's growing influence
sexual activities" by Japa- Another 20 women, some Korean women came for- ment assets in South Korea in the region.q

U.S. sanctions prominent Iraqi politician over rights abuses

able. He is the chairman panded and allows the U.S. ues to hold the post. Though
of the Popular Mobiliza- to target any foreigner ac- Iran-backed groups func-
tion Forces, an umbrella of cused of human rights vio- tioning under the umbrella
mostly Shiite militias, includ- lations and corruption. stand accused by activists
ing powerful Iran-backed Anti-government protest- and the U.S., no official in-
groups, and served as ers in Iraq have long ac- vestigation has ever been
national security advisor. cused Iran-linked militias of conducted to identify the
The umbrella group was targeting them during mass perpetrators of the killings
formed in 2014 to counter demonstrations that be- of protesters.
the Islamic State group, fol- gan in October 2019, when It is also unclear how much
lowing a fatwa from Iraq's thousands rallied against influence al-Fayyadh had
top Shiite cleric Ali al-Sistani. corruption, unemployment, over the operations of indi-
There was no immediate poor public services and vidual militia groups, lead-
comment from al-Fayyadh. other grievances. More ing some Iraqi officials to
The growing influence of than 500 people were killed speculate over the political
the Shiite group over Iraqi during the months-long implications of the latest
Supporters of the Popular Mobilization Forces hold a poster of state affairs — in particular protests, many of them sanctions.
Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy commander of the Popular its Iran-backed elements — demonstrators shot by Iraqi Al-Fayyadh deputy, pow-
Mobilization Forces and General Qassem Soleimani, head of has alarmed U.S. officials. security forces. erful militia leader Abu
Iran's Quds force during a rally to commemorate the anniver-
sary of the killing of Soleimanil and al-Muhandis in a U.S. drone Al-Fayyadh was targeted The protests have since Mahdi al-Muhandis, was
strike in Basra, Iraq, Friday, Jan. 8, 2021. under the Magnitsky Act, died down, due to the vio- considered far more influ-
Associated Press passed by Congress in 2012 lent crackdown, kidnap- ential over the activities
initially in response to the pings and targeted assas- of Iran-backed groups in
BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. The Treasury said Falih al- death of Russian lawyer sinations of activists, and Iraq. Al-Muhandis was killed
Treasury on Friday imposed Fayyadh stands accused Sergei Magnitsky, who died also due to the coronavirus in a Washington-directed
sanctions on a prominent of "directing and supervis- in prison after exposing a lockdowns. drone strike last year target-
Iraqi politician and security ing the killing of peaceful tax fraud scheme involv- Al-Fayyadh has been the ing the top Iranian general
official, accusing him of se- Iraqi demonstrators" in 2019 ing Russian officials. The law head of the Shiite militias Qassim Soleimani outside
rious human rights abuses. and must be held account- named after him was ex- during this time and contin- Baghdad airport.q